Havana, Cuba

In the afternoon in our second day we arrived in La Havana, the capital of Cuba. I must admit, we were in Havana less than a day, because of the overbooking of our plane, and that was too short. Havana is by far the leading cultural centre of the country, offers a wide variety of features that range from museums, palaces, public squares, avenues, churches, fortresses (including the largest fortified complex in the Americas dating from the 16th through 18th centuries), festivals and exhibitions. The restoration of Old Havana (still they are restoring and building very much we could see from our hotel) offers a number of new attractions, including a museum to house relics of the Cuban revolution.

In rapid speed we visited (like Japanese tourists) Paseo del Prado, Centro Havana, The Capitool, the Plaza de la Revalution, José Martí Memorial and many other things in half a day.

What a city! Me, as a car lover, it was great to see much of the old American cars, 60 years old. They are kept together, sometimes by tape, but they will drive! Also strange to see are the busses. A lot of these busses comes from Holland, and in the centre of Havana you see a bus still with "Geldermalsen" on the display. For us Dutch we could laugh about it. I don't think this bus would bring us to Geldermalsen for only 2 pesos. But even we saw only a glimb of the city, the most popular things, you could feel the history of it. Havana is founded in 1515 by the Spanish. It became Cuba's capital in 1607 (Baracoa was the fist capital 1511-1515 and Santiago de Cuba the second from 1515-1607 which we also should visit). Havana can essentially be described as three cities in one: Old havana, Vedado, and the newer suburban districts. Old Havana, with its narrow streets and overhanging balconies, is the traditional centre of part of Havana's commerce, industry, and entertainment, as well as being a residential area. The influence from different styles and cultures can be seen in Havana's colonial architecture, with a diverse range of Moorish, Spanish, Italian, Greek and Roman. But I can write about it what I want, but you must see and feel the city.

At night, we off course were tired from the first 2 hectical days. But after dinner we could not resist to see a bit of the night life in Havana. It is so great! The Cuban bars are filled up with people. But they are off course very happy to see Dutch tourists, so they make room for us. In a table you can enjoy the life music which is everywhere, and enjoy the mojito's and Cubra Libres. After a few hours we came back to our hotel for a (too short) night. The next day we would leave for Vinales.